Poor mans Glendo Sharpener

John Allan · Jun 26, 2018

About 3 years ago I bought a 12 x 30 Nardini lathe that needed a LOT of work. I finished the electrics and got it turning, then fixed the mechanicals to make it work and feed. Now came the accuracy.

I attended Richards scraping class in Ohio last year to help develop the knowledge and skills I needed to scrape in my Nardini. After using the Glendo at the class I realized that the sharpening that I was doing at home was stone age.

The pictures show the result of my efforts. The dog driver shown has a 6” "Ebay" diamond disc secured to it. The working surface is clamped onto a spacer having a 5 degree angle. Below is a tray with an absorbent material to protect the lathe. So far the results are great. I have been running the 3000 grit finishing disc at about 350 RPM. Finish is good and splashing and cleanup of the WD40 lube is minimal.

One tip I picked up in Richards class was the use of clear packaging tape to transfer the bluing pattern on you wok, to a sheet of paper. Between my old eyes and the poor lighting in my shop, this has been a big help in seeing the results of my work.
John

CalG · Jun 26, 2018

John

I really like that.

I've got a very small Spinning lathe that is just right for this addition.

Thanks for the inspiration!

billzweig · Jun 26, 2018

It always makes me uncomfortable to see any abrasive work done on a lathe. On the rare occasion I did it (to internally grind collets in place ) I've covered the whole lathe - as much as possible - with oil impregnated cloth that as disposed after the operation.

morestainless · Jun 26, 2018

My solution is a speed controlled, single speed router motor mounted in the base of my old, unused Atlas horizontal mill (sans head, motor mount, pulleys, and gearing). On either end of the table sit 5C grinder spin indexers mounted each in the base of a cheap, tilting vise. Depending on what collet/mandrel is in the indexer, it works for graver blanks, scraper blanks, lathe and milling tooling. Still assembling it. Still have to spend $600 on 3 diamond disks, lapping disk, and diamond lapping solution.

Milland · Jun 26, 2018

billzweig said:
It always makes me uncomfortable to see any abrasive work done on a lathe. On the rare occasion I did it (to internally grind collets in place ) I've covered the whole lathe - as much as possible - with oil impregnated cloth that as disposed after the operation.

Agreed. Also, set up a shop-vac with a HEPA filter to try to capture as much of the dust as possible. It's been shown that cobalt (the binder in most carbide tools) can be hazardous to human health.

JST · Jun 27, 2018

The Glendo units are operated with the wheel wet. That takes care of the dust to a large extent, so its not flying around. Wipe up when you are done. Maybe the HEPA filter catches it, but I'd rather wipe it up wet and dispose of it.

There is only so much that can be done about grinding dust. And this particular dust is for-sure abrasive, because it is partly carbide. Normally, I do the best I can to cover and wipe up if I grind in the lathe. They are , after all, not expected to last forever.

But it makes me uncomfortable to have what amounts to lapping powder generated on the lathe, at the least I'd want it wet so I can see and control where it goes, and clean up well. Better yet, make some other device to spin the abrasive disk.. Unless, of course, the lathe in question is for grinding or welding.... then have at it.

Richard King · Jun 27, 2018

I have seen several devices made over the years. Using a lathe a few times but I do cringe when I see them. As everyone has said be careful and watch where the grit ends up. I can't count how many carbide tools I have ground. If I croak and they find carbide in my lungs, oh well, better that then a Mack Truck. LOL Seriously I have had my small portable Glendo for 30+ years and it's been used bye thousands of students and myself. Never had to do anything accept change the wheels. On here I have seen lappers made wood, sewing machines, thread mills, and they all work, some a lot better then others. Vettebob is the one who showed me how he used the Chinese engraving wheels he only paid $50.00 for 3. Another thing scary about a lathe is the torgue of the machine. Get you finger caught between the wheel and plate, say goodbye to your finger. Cheap sometimes is not the best way to go.

John Allan · Jun 27, 2018

billzweig said:
It always makes me uncomfortable to see any abrasive work done on a lathe. On the rare occasion I did it (to internally grind collets in place ) I've covered the whole lathe - as much as possible - with oil impregnated cloth that as disposed after the operation.

I knew that posting a device that used a lathe for abrasive operations might provoke a “discussion”. Purists and concerned owners would object to “subjecting” a lathe to this kind of operation. Sure, take precautions; keep it clean and well oiled. But my view is that machinery is to be USED.

I am 75 years old and use the lathe for about 3 hours a day. And I calculated that at the present rate of use, I will destroy the lathe as I reach my 912th birthday.
John

TGTool · Jun 27, 2018

Does anyone make a distinction between plated diamond wheels and other abrasive wheels when we're talking about side effects? Regular aluminum oxide wheels are designed to shed pieces of abrasive to stay sharp. Diamond wheels no doubt also shed abrasive because at some point in their life they no longer work well. But it does seem to me that there's a large difference in the actions of the two and perhaps in the steps necessary to mitigate any downside.

Just wondering.

JST · Jun 27, 2018

Agree on the machine is to be used...

The wheels probably do not shed much, but the dust or slurry from the carbide sharpening is a mix of carbide and cobalt (etc). That's a guaranteed abrasive, and worth taking a bit of care with. Wet sharpening slings the stuff around, but pretty much in a line, so it is not hard to clean up. Working dry, the dust goes wherever.

Paolo_MD · Jun 27, 2018

Three things to be considered here:
1) If the diamond wheel is spun at low speed, like on a Glendo, it's much more the slurry that drips at the bottom than the one that is slung around (if any at all).
2) Particle size: with Aluminum oxide, silicon carbide, and other "granular" wheels you have a lot of large abrasive particles shed off the wheel, whereas the slurry from grinding carbide on a lapidary disk generates significantly fewer, significantly smaller particles. Assuming, by absurd, no protection at all on the ways, the abrasion caused by the carbide/diamond slurry would be of much lesser magnitude compared to the one caused by the larger aluminum oxide or other abrasives shed by a regular grinding wheel.
3) Health hazards: yes, any grinding dust isn't very nice for respiratory track, the finer the worst. As mentioned, grinding at low speed in a wet environment takes care of most of it. Unless you do it as daily job, the residual risk is minimal and could be further minimized with other common sense measures, like limiting contact with skin and proper hygiene, I don't think it's even one of the highest health hazards we're regularly exposed in our shops.

Paolo

dcsipo · Jun 27, 2018

Yeah, a lathe works., but get a small DC motor with an SCR controller. A treadmill motor is a bit of an overkill but 50-60 bucks or so on eBay gets you one. then it is just constructing a suitable table and mounting and you have a standalone grinder. less than 10 bucks for a lapidary disk will give a lifetime of grinding power. Doing this on the lathe is cheap, but it will cost you more in the long run.

dee
;-D

michiganbuck · Jun 27, 2018

With not big effort one can mount a bench grinder on a table. Put a pulley on one side where the other wheel might go.
Mount a DC or just a single speed motor behind the simple bench grinder to belt up..
So then one can run at the normal motor speed or higher/slower. This takes up little space and can be very handy.

Yes still use the OD wheel and with a face wheel or plate the side face.

Not tying up the lathe or getting it full of grit and with a few attachments can do many jobs.

Qt[any grinding dust isn't very nice for respiratory track,} i was lucky with so many years eating dust..now I wear a mask cutting wood to grinding...

I'm doing a lot of cutting LP Smartside making deer blinds....Just a simple two strap mask is good.

Pete Deal · Jun 27, 2018

I agree with the rest- this is not a nice way to treat your lathe.

I bought a used glendo. They run about 300rpm. Prior to buying one my plan was to make one. There are tons of old washing machine motors out there. Generally I would not consider a washing machine motor for a shop machine but in this case a washer or dryer motor with an itty bitty pulley driving a large pulley would be great. Wrap some sheet metal over the thing and it will look great. Or as others have said use a DC motor since it is easy to reverse.

steve-l · Jun 28, 2018

For years I struggled with tool grinding on inexpensive grinders and I got very good at it. Then on a whim, I bid on a new Baldor series 500 tool grinder. They are expensive, as are the wheels. Eventually, I acquired the correct wheels and set it up. I can't believe how stupid I was for so long. In short order the grinder paid for itself in time saved and the accuracy of the delivered tool. Grinding on your lathe is not healthy for the machine and like others have said, you shouldn't do it. I recently created a thread on the acquisition of resin bound diamond wheels for this machine, which makes short work of sharpening carbide tools. If you are thinking about acquiring a Baldor grinder, you need to read through that thread. Baldor wants $900 for those diamond wheels. I found a perfect source for $112 each in the grit of your choice.

partsproduction · Jun 30, 2018

My brother made a nice imitation of a Glendo using pieces of aluminum plate and a small motor, I donated some Glendo wheels, and he has the RPM about right. Actually it's better in a way than my Glndo in that mine is an older model that doesn't reverse, his does. I'll ask him to submit a photo.

DanLinsch · Jul 1, 2018

partsproduction said:
My brother made a nice imitation of a Glendo using pieces of aluminum plate and a small motor, I donated some Glendo wheels, and he has the RPM about right. Actually it's better in a way than my Glndo in that mine is an older model that doesn't reverse, his does. I'll ask him to submit a photo.

Here ya go. This works great, although it does run faster, at 360 rpm, than your Glendo unit. I do use the reversing switch quite a bit.

Dan

Ohio Mike · Jul 1, 2018

steve-l said:
For years I struggled with tool grinding on inexpensive grinders and I got very good at it. Then on a whim, I bid on a new Baldor series 500 tool grinder. They are expensive, as are the wheels. Eventually, I acquired the correct wheels and set it up. I can't believe how stupid I was for so long. In short order the grinder paid for itself in time saved and the accuracy of the delivered tool. Grinding on your lathe is not healthy for the machine and like others have said, you shouldn't do it. I recently created a thread on the acquisition of resin bound diamond wheels for this machine, which makes short work of sharpening carbide tools. If you are thinking about acquiring a Baldor grinder, you need to read through that thread. Baldor wants $900 for those diamond wheels. I found a perfect source for $112 each in the grit of your choice.

A great grinder for sure but still 10x too fast for what the OP is doing. To be clear he's not grinding, he is diamond lapping blades for scraping. This setup shouldn't be putting grit on the machine. When we did this in Richards class (I was in the same class as John) there was very little mess.

CalG · Jul 1, 2018

Ohio Mike said:
A great grinder for sure but still 10x too fast for what the OP is doing. To be clear he's not grinding, he is diamond lapping blades for scraping. This setup shouldn't be putting grit on the machine. When we did this in Richards class (I was in the same class as John) there was very little mess.

Exactly!The wheel I use at present is just a plate with a raised anulus. The working surface is charged by rolling in some diamond paste from a tube I have had "forever".

Carbide is restored in minutes with nothing needed for clean up but a paper towel. There is nothing at all on the lathe it's self.

But, I like the idea of moving the setup to the otherwise unused spinning lathe. Setting up on the Wade 94 is just one more thing to do.

Poor mans Glendo Sharpener

Aluminum

Attachments

Diamond

Stainless

Cast Iron

Diamond

Diamond

Diamond

Aluminum

Titanium

Diamond

Stainless

Diamond

Diamond

Titanium

Titanium

Titanium

Aluminum

Titanium

Diamond

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